The Maldives government on Tuesday invited the United Nations and other international organisations to observe the former president’s appeal of his 13-year jail sentence for ordering a judge’s arrest while in office.
The United States, European Union and others have raised concerns about the court process that found Mohamed Nasheed guilty of ordering the arrest of a senior judge when he was in office three years ago. The court said the arrest was akin to abduction under the country’s terrorism law.
The Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it has invited the United Nations and the Commonwealth to send representatives to observe the appeal hearing. The invitation did not elaborate, but it comes after UN human rights chief Zeid Raad al-Hussein said last week there were “flagrant irregularities” in the case against Nasheed and urged the Maldives government to allow international jurists to observe the appeal.
Nasheed’s lawyers have said the hearing had many flaws.
They said the judges did not give them time to prepare their defense and rejected defense witnesses before they heard them and that two judges who heard the case were also prosecution witnesses.
The United States, European Union and others have raised concerns about the court process that found Mohamed Nasheed guilty of ordering the arrest of a senior judge when he was in office three years ago. The court said the arrest was akin to abduction under the country’s terrorism law.
The Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it has invited the United Nations and the Commonwealth to send representatives to observe the appeal hearing. The invitation did not elaborate, but it comes after UN human rights chief Zeid Raad al-Hussein said last week there were “flagrant irregularities” in the case against Nasheed and urged the Maldives government to allow international jurists to observe the appeal.
Nasheed’s lawyers have said the hearing had many flaws.
They said the judges did not give them time to prepare their defense and rejected defense witnesses before they heard them and that two judges who heard the case were also prosecution witnesses.